The present invention relates to a method of and device for restoring kidney function, and more particularly, to a method of and device for restoring kidney function by means of electromagnetic stimulation.
As the restoration of kidney function is largely dependent on the cause of the kidney failure and on the state of the kidney tissue at the time the treatment is to be implemented, a brief overview of renal disease and renal failure is provided, along with a look at currently-known treatment procedures.
Kidney Failure
The distinction between acute and chronic renal failure is of cardinal importance. Chronic renal failure allows the body to adjust gradually, tolerating and compensating for the impaired function. Acute renal failure occurs rapidly, in a matter of hours or a few days, and therefore causes serious metabolic disruptions. During kidney failure, the kidneys stop filtering the body's metabolic waste products properly. These products collect in the blood, a condition known as uremia.
The most common causes of acute renal failure are shock or trauma (usually from blood loss), infection, and drug reactions, often in combination. Most cases now occur in the hospital, where the condition is easily and promptly diagnosed and acute kidney dialysis units are ready to begin treatment.
Chronic renal failure is usually caused by glomerulone-phritis, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, amyloidosis (accumulation of protein and starch in various organs), and other conditions that cause long-term kidney damage.
Because acute failure occurs suddenly and usually involves the entire kidney, the flow of urine is usually suppressed. Even when the urine flow is very low, however, few people notice the change or realize its significance. When a toxic substance or a drug has caused acute failure, the symptoms of uremia manifest themselves before the person is aware of the problem. The acute and total loss of kidney function does not allow the body to compensate, and symptoms may develop within a few days, usually indicated by swelling of the feet, shortness of breath, or headache. These symptoms stem from the acute retention of salt and water, sharply raising blood pressure, altering brain metabolism, and congesting the heart and lungs. Without treatment, more serious problems appear, including hyperkalemia, a buildup in the blood of potassium that is usually excreted in the urine. Potassium buildup can cause heart rhythm irregularity or stop the heart completely, with potentially fatal results.
Unlike acute renal failure, chronic renal failure does not shut down the entire kidney at once. As some nephrons become diseased, others compensate, enlarging and assuming a portion of the lost function. Since the body has time to adjust, the symptoms of chronic failure differ considerably from those of acute failure and the adjustments are so successful that symptoms rarely are perceived until 90 to 95 percent of kidney function is lost. (At the same time, another illness, surgery, or a complication of hypertension may limit effective compensation.)
Symptoms usually appear so gradually, that patients adjust to them unconsciously: rising at night to pass urine, sleeping more to cope with fatigue, and avoiding stairs, hills, and lifting to offset breathlessness. Only when a minimally acceptable level of function has deteriorated, or when an acute episode is precipitated by a complication like stroke, heart failure, inflamed stomach, colon, or heart sac, do people seek medical attention.
Treatment
Acute renal failure is a medical emergency, but one that is rarely fatal, and is completely treatable with either medications or dialysis. Since acute failure today usually results from very serious disease elsewhere in the body, the outcome depends on the course of that disease. When the underlying kidney insult is corrected, most acute failure clears up in a few days with the help of medication. If a longer recovery period is necessary, dialysis may be needed until the kidneys heal, a process that may take 2 weeks to 2 months. Patients who do not respond to treatment may have to undergo long-term dialysis.
Dialysis
The most dramatic revolution in the treatment of chronic renal failure during the past 40 years has been the use of dialysis to treat chronic renal failure as well as acute renal failure. Although this may not seem revolutionary today, it represented a radically new idea in therapeutics.
Artificial kidneys generally filter the blood for 4 hours at a time, three times per week. Since these filters cannot perform any of the many metabolic functions of the kidney, full health cannot be truly restored, but most patients manage to maintain varied and useful lives despite the chronic state of disease produced by maintenance hemodialysis.
Dialysis patients must:                Adhere to rigid dialysis schedules        Restrict fluid intake and follow strictly controlled diets        Take daily medications        Endure anemia, abnormal bone metabolism, chronic uremia, and diminished sexual function        
Other possible complications of dialysis include high or low blood pressure, weakness, fatigue, cramps, weight loss, psychiatric disturbances, loss of nerve functions leading to muscle paralysis, and recurrent infections.
Still, for many the only alternative to dialysis is certain death, although at the time the first kidney machines were invented, few expected the human body to endure dialysis so well. From the time the artificial kidney was invented in 1946 until 1961, these machines were only used to tide over patients with acute renal failure who would eventually recover.
In the U.S.A. alone, over 90,000 people who would otherwise be dead are supported by kidney machines in hospitals, dialysis centers, or at home. The overall cost to the federal government (USA) for these programs is $3 billion annually.
An alternative to dialysis is transplantation. However, despite the newest medications, transplantation is inherently risky. The suppression and alteration of immunity—necessary during transplantation—creates unique problems and risks. During the first year, transplants result in death far more than does dialysis.
There is therefore a recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a device for, and method of, averting the need for dialysis and kidney transplant, by restoring kidney function to kidneys in which the cells have stopped contributing, or contribute in a reduced fashion, to the overall functioning of the kidney. It would be of further advantage for the device and method to be painless, non-invasive, and safe for the user.